Down, Set, Answer! The Ultimate College Football Quiz

Do you know your college football facts? It not, there might be a stiff penalty.

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Question 1 of 30

What do the winners of the Alabama versus Tennessee game do every year?

steal the opposing mascot

bring down the goal posts

smoke cigars

Although Alabama started the victory cigar tradition, Tennessee partakes when they defeat the Crimson Tide. They do this in spite of the fact that tobacco use and free cigars violate NCAA rules, so they report themselves to get in minimal, if any trouble.

Question 2 of 30

Which of the following celebrities did not play college football?

Bill Cosby

Vin Diesel

Jones was an offensive guard at Harvard, and was on the school's undefeated 1968 team. Cosby played fullback for the Temple University Owls, and also ran track and field. Incidentally, Diesel's real name is Mark Sinclair. You're welcome.

Tommy Lee Jones

Question 3 of 30

How many times has a team successfully earned a one-point safety?

5

This bizarre occurrence, which has only happened five times since 1988, rewards the offense with one point if the defense gains possession of the ball on a point-after try (kicking a field goal), but is then tackled in the end zone by the offense.

15

35

Question 4 of 30

What are "tries?"

the number of attempts to achieve a first down

txtra-point kicks and two-point conversions

Following a touchdown, a team may opt to kick for the extra point or "go for two" via a passing play.

the amount of attempted passes in a given game

Question 5 of 30

Which two teams played in the very first college football game?

Yale and Harvard

Rutgers and Princeton

Played Nov. 6, 1869, Rutgers barely edged out Princeton with a score of 6-4. Notably, the game also lacked forward passing, which wasn't added until 1906.

Stanford and UCLA

Question 6 of 30

Which program holds the record for the most punishing defeat of all time?

Ohio State

Georgia Tech

Way back in 1916 the Yellow Jackets destroyed Cumberland University 222-0. That's 32 touchdowns! Rumor has it that the defeat was in retribution for an ill-fated baseball match-up between the two schools.

LSU

Question 7 of 30

Who holds the record for the most passing yards in a single game?

Drew Brees

David Klingler

Back in 1990 Houston quarterback Klingler passed for 716 yards in one game against Arizona State.

Peyton Manning

Question 8 of 30

What is Auburn University's mascot?

Aubie the tiger

Leave it to an Alabama team to make something as simple as a mascot so confusing. The team's official mascot is Aubie the tiger, but "War Eagle!" is a commonly heard game day battle cry.

the war eagle

Aubie the war tiger

Question 9 of 30

Which two teams participate in the Battle for the Golden Boot?

Michigan and Michigan State

Arkansas and LSU

The match-up earned its name thanks to a 200-pound (90.7-kilogram) trophy made to look like the states of Arkansas and Louisiana … which together, look like a boot.

Florida and Florida State

Question 10 of 30

What's the record for the most interceptions thrown in a single game?

6

9

University of Florida quarterback John Reaves threw nine interceptions in the 1969 match-up against Auburn.

12

Question 11 of 30

Which school also features burial grounds on the stadium premises?

Vanderbilt

University of Georgia

The school's wildly popular mascots are known as Uga the bulldog, each of whom are interred in a marble mausoleum within Sanford Stadium once he's gone to the Great Dawg House in the Sky.

NYU

Question 12 of 30

What has traditionally lived in the upper decks of Texas A&M's Kyle Field?

bats

As many as a quarter million Mexican free-tailed bats have called the eaves of Kyle Field home since it was built in 1927. The site's population has likely declined, however, thanks to renovations, which forced many of the winged friends to relocate.

termites

endangered owls

Question 13 of 30

What factor helps a team make it into the college football playoff schedule?

a Heisman trophy winner on the roster

a 13th game

The typical season sports a 12-game schedule, but tournament championship games give strong programs an extra win, thus an advantage over other conferences that don't have a final regular season game.

a judge in their pocket

Question 14 of 30

Who is the winningest coach in college football history?

Bear Bryant

Joe Paterno

Paterno's wins between 1998 and 2011 were temporarily vacated, thanks to the trauma of the Jerry Sandusky child molestation case, but were restored in 2015. First runner-up Bowden is said to support this decision.

Bobby Bowden

Question 15 of 30

How many losing seasons did Paul "Bear" Bryant have during his career?

None

1

The only losing season on Bear Bryant's impressive resume was his first, while coaching at Texas A&M. He went on to lead his teams to 13 conference titles and six national championships.

4

Question 16 of 30

Which mascot is the most commonly used?

tiger

bullldog

More teams are fronted by bulldogs than any other mascot. And who can blame them? They're so loveable, if slobbery.

wildcat

Question 17 of 30

Which team has won the most games?

Michigan

The Wolverines have more wins than any other program, but other schools have a higher win percentage, since they began playing football later.

UCLA

Notre Dame

Question 18 of 30

What were Penn State's original colors?

yellow and white

blue and purple

pink and black

Chosen in 1897 by student representatives, dark pink and black were eventually swapped out for blue and white because the pink faded too quickly to white. Yeah, that was the reason…

Question 19 of 30

True or False: Every Notre Dame home game has been a sellout since 1966.

true

false

All but one game since the 1966 season sold out, with the only exception being a Thanksgiving Day game, which was held on the holiday due to television requirements.

Question 20 of 30

Which stadium holds the most college football fans?

Penn State

University of Michigan

With seating for more than 107,000 fans, Michigan barely edges out Penn State's capacity of 106,572.

University of Tennessee

Question 21 of 30

What's the official fight song of the University of Tennessee Volunteers?

"Rocky Top"

"Down the Field"

One of the most beloved songs associated with college football is "Rocky Top," yet it's not actually the official fight song for the Knoxville university. Nonetheless, the ditty has been played ad nauseum at UT games since 1972, and was written by country duo Felice and Boudleaux Bryant.

"Bleedin' Orange"

Question 22 of 30

Which program holds the unfortunate record of most NCAA infractions?

Alabama

Southern Methodist University

SMU's football program was famously suspended for the entirety of 1987, as well as home games in 1988 after they were busted for major violations, occurring between 1974 and 1985.

Oklahoma

Question 23 of 30

How many officials are on field at a time?

5

7

8

2015 saw a significant change with the number of on-field officials increased from seven to eight. The newbie is known as the "center judge" and can be found in the offensive backfield, just opposite the referee. He's also easy to spot, thanks to the "C" on his uniform.

Question 24 of 30

After how many overtimes must a team try for a two-point conversion, rather than simply kicking the extra point?

1

2

Prior to 1996, many games ended in ties. The first two overtime periods allow for teams to kick an extra point after scoring a touchdown, but all bets are off after that, and they must go for the more difficult two-point conversion.

never

Question 25 of 30

Speaking of overtime, does the team that wins the coin toss usually choose to start the series on offense or defense?

offense

defense

Most teams elect to go on defense first, since it's easier to strategize about how many points are necessary to win or keep the tied game going if you already know what the other team has put on the board.

It's about even.

Question 26 of 30

Who is the only player ever to win the Heisman Trophy twice?

Johnny Manziel

Archie Griffin

Berwanger received the inaugural award in 1935, but Ohio State's Griffin took it home in both 1974 and 1975.

Jay Berwanger

Question 27 of 30

Which team has walked away with the most national championship titles, to date?

Yale

With 18 titles, Yale barely edges out Princeton's 17. It's worth noting, however, that neither has brought home the big prize since their football heyday in the 1920s.

Princeton

Michigan

Question 28 of 30

Which Division 1 program holds the record for the longest winning streak of all time?

Alabama

Oklahoma

Between 1953 and 1957, the Oklahoma Sooners won an impressive (and unlikely to be surpassed anytime soon) 47 games in a row.

Oregon

Question 29 of 30

What's the longest field goal ever kicked?

60 yards (54.7 meters)

67 yards (61.3 meters)

The three kickers who've achieved this incredibly long kick must have golden legs. At the very least, they definitely ate their Wheaties that morning.

72 yards (65.8 meters)

Question 30 of 30

What's the average difference in SAT score between college football players and their peers?

50 points

175 points

220 points

A study of 54 public universities with major football programs revealed an average 220 point gap between football players and their university brethren. The gap was largest at the University of Florida, where players scored 346 points lower than their peers.